


I've been ready my whole life

by Joudie



Category: Pitch (TV 2016)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-20
Updated: 2018-02-17
Packaged: 2018-11-02 23:10:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10954671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Joudie/pseuds/Joudie
Summary: A Series of One-Shots.Chapter I: “It's not what it looks like.”Chapter II: "Are you my nurse?"Chapter III: Comfort.Chapter IV: "Did I win?"Chapter V: "Wanna bet?"Chapter VI: "Don't worry; I got you."Chapter VII: I’ll surrender up my heart and swap it for yours.





	1. “It's not what it looks like.”

     Mike knew his eyes looked like the balls in those pinball machines he used to play when he was younger, as he tried to take in the scene in front of him. He decisively settled his eyes on his rookie pitcher, on her knees, her curls wedged in his rookie catcher’s belt loop, while said catcher was looking at Mike with a smug smile. Mike heaved a huge sigh.

     “What are you two up to?” Mike inquired as he scratched his beard.

     Ginny hesitated and just before she spoke, Livan explained, “Mami was helping me with something.”

     “I'm sure she was,” mumbled Mike under his breath.

     “Hey!” Ginny snapped incredulously. “You're gonna pay for that comment when I get out of this, Lawson.”

     Ginny struggled to free her hair some more then finally having had enough, she exasperatedly asked him for help. Mike closed the distance between the two and gently unwound her hair. When he finished, Ginny sprang up so fast her head almost collided with his jaw.

     “Easy,” he steadied her, his large hands on her hips. She tugged on his beard then ducked her head in embarrassment.

     “Well,” she provided, when Mike slightly tightened his hold on her, “Livan needed assistance with his shoes. Seems as though someone nailed his cleats to his locker.” Ginny locked eyes with Mike. “You wouldn't happen to know who would do such a thing to a rookie, now would you, Old Man?”

     “Of course not,” he replied.

     She smirked as she lightly hit the back of her hand to his stomach.

     “Duarte out, I need to talk to Baker.”

     “Are mommy and daddy fighting again?” At Mike's glare, Duarte’s smile got bigger. He winked at Ginny and said, “I'm giving you 5 minutes, sí?” Ginny rolled her eyes and ushered him out.

     When Duarte shut the door behind him, Mike turned on Ginny, his hands shifting to get a hold of her ass. “Remind me again why you wanted Duarte to know about us?”

     She shrugged playfully. “Because he could be our lookout whenever you wanna get all naughty with me?” She sighed, as if it pained her to say the next part, “but who could blame you? No one seems to get enough of me.”

     He smirked down at her. “Looks like some of my narcissism has rubbed off on you.”

     Ginny looked at the door, smiling mischievously, “I wish something else was rubbing on me right now.”

     Ginny laughed her hoarse-y laugh while Mike chuckled when they heard Duarte groan on the other side of the door.

     “So, what's up?” Ginny asked, running her nails across Mike's scalp.

     He closed his eyes, smiling at his girlfriend. “I heard Oscar and Al talking,” he said, his expression turned serious and focused back on her.

     “About?” she prompted, head crooked to the side.

     “They're worried you're going over your innings limit again.”

     “Fuck,” Ginny sighed. “How many do I have?”

     Mike bite his lip. He shifted, looking away. “Two starts at most.”

     “What?!” Ginny almost yelled. “I'm nowhere near my pitch count, at least 20 pitches below last time.”

     “Yeah, well, they definitely don't want a repeat of last time.” Mike smiled at how furious she looked. He adored her dedication to the game. She was a gamer through and through. She'd had to fight her way harder than any other player he had ever known and still come on top stronger than ever. He had watched her fumble, fall and fail many times but he was also a witness to her strength and dedication. He was forever in awe of her. Mike knew she wouldn't take being told her season was over but he had to give her a heads up. He sobered up when she glared at him (he doesn't like to brag, _well that's a lie but_... Mike took credit for her perfecting that glare). “We only have three games before we're through the season anyway,” he soothed her.

     She grunted some sort of confirmation, for now willing to curb her anger.

     At that moment, Duarte raised his voice from the other side of the door. Mike and Ginny reluctantly broke their embrace and each took a seat on the physical therapy bed, Mike was already pulling up the hitters list on a nearby iPad.

     Al came into the room without knocking (why would he? It's his clubhouse) and his eyes ping ponged between his captain and rookie pitcher. They settled on Ginny when he said, “Baker, a word?”

     Ginny nodded and rose, following skip. She glanced at Mike before leaving. He stared at her intently, trying to tell her to ease up on Al and management. She scoffed softly, but took his silent advice into consideration.

     After her brief talk with Al where he indeed told her they were shutting her down soon, Ginny made her way back to the trainer's room. She made it just in time to observe Mike smiling at Duarte like they were friends. 

     Both her eyes and his widened when she met Mike's. “It's not what it looks like,” he repeated back to her.


	2. "Are you my nurse?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Series of One-Shots.
> 
> Chapter II: “Are you my nurse?”

     The gorgeous woman shook her head, her curls bouncing around her shoulders as she tried to suppress a smile. She surrendered and Mike had never been so grateful in his life because he got to witness her dimples. Her shoulder-length hair framed her brown face that was lit up in amusement. She had on skin-tight black leggings that hugged her muscles in all the right places and a blue jean jacket, cuffs rolled up to her elbows. He was pretty sure he’d never been so blessed with such a sight before.

    “Wow,” he breathed, his voice husky from lack of use. “Are you an angel?”

    She threw her head back and laughed a hoarse-y laugh, at him it seemed. He didn't mind if she was mocking him. He would probably do anything in order to hear that sound often and soon. “No,” she chuckled at him.

    He beamed at her as fragments of his memory gradually started coming back to him. He was at the hospital to get surgery for his knee. He craned his neck to look down at it. A white sheet was covering his body and just as he was on the verge of lifting it to get a good glance at his knee, the beautiful woman captured his hand to stop its direction. “Oh, no you don't. The docs haven't been in here and I'm not about to take a look at that monster. I'm feeling queasy as it is.” She stood by his bed, resting his hand back on his lap. He stared at the contrast of her brown skin and his paler complexion for a minute before he was transfixed by the simple but beautiful and elegant ring on her fourth finger. He groaned. She was married. _Of course she was!_

    “You okay?” she asked in concern. Her keen, brown eyes took in every visible inch of him, assessing for damage, mistaking his groan for one of physical agony. Even with her eyebrows pulled together and a frown settled over her full lips, she was still the most beautiful person he had ever seen.

    However, he was scarcely paying attention to her analysis because he was too engrossed in his thoughts as he stumbled onto a realization. Her husband wasn't with her. She was here alone. This somehow made him think that he still had a chance. Suddenly he heard his _nenek’s_ gravelly voice in his head saying, _“Dimana ada kemauan, di situ ada jalan.” Where there is a will, there is a way._  

    “Damn, the docs did say they hopped you up on so much pain killers you wouldn’t even remember your own name.” He didn't realize he spoke his grandma’s words out loud until she murmured that. She cautiously sat on the edge of his bed and tilted her head down to look at him then whispered, “I love it when you talk sexy to me in Indonesian.”

    He almost choked on his spit at the comment. As it was, he barely hid it with a cough. 

    “Sorry for keeping you waiting,” they both angled their heads toward the door where a doctor and a nurse by her side strolled into the room. The doctor closed the door and reviewed Mike’s medical chart. “If you're comfortable, Mr. and Mrs. Lawson, we can get started.”

 _Wait!_ “What?” Mike turned to look at the woman sitting on his bed in wonder. He knew he looked ridiculous and that his eyes were probably more dilated than when he smoked pot that one time in college but he couldn't help it. This beautiful woman was married to him? She was married to him! Mike nearly asked her if she lost a bet but kept his mouth firmly shut on that question, but instead he blurted, “You're my wife?”

    Completely neglecting the doctor, the woman zeroed her focus on him, her eyes lighting up in amusement. She chuckled again, but said, “Yes, hi. Ginny Baker,” she introduced herself, “nice to meet you.”

    “Holy shit,” Mike replied. “I married the most beautiful person on earth.”

    The doctor joined Ginny's laughter and Mike finally tore his eyes to take the doctor in. “As I said previously, temporary memory loss is normal following surgery. He'll recover soon after the sedative leaves his system.”

    About 30 seconds of the doctor discussing recovery time after knee replacement surgery and all there is to know about it, Mike started to zone out. His eyes had better things to focus on. Namely his wife. When the doctor first started explaining the after procedure care, Ginny had laced her fingers with his. Now he was trailing his eyes up her arm, across her slender neck, and settling them on the side of her concentrated face.

    Mike focused on her features and watched as her head bobbed and her hair followed, nodding at something the doctor said. Then she bit her lip in contemplation before she replied. Mike wondered how many times he had kissed those lips. He stroked his thumb softly over her fingers and noticed the sides of her lips turning up even as her eyes stayed fixed on the doctor. He really wanted to kiss those lips. He wondered how rude it would be if he were to kick the doctor and the nurse out of the room. He finally decided that he was entitled since he was the patient and he had just been in surgery _and_ found out he had a wife. He opened his mouth to demand just that when he heard the doctor say, “Well, we'll leave you to get a little comfortable while we get your release papers ready.” 

    Ginny thanked her graciously then redirected her attention to Mike when they were alone in the room again.

    She smirked at him and said, rather tauntingly, “We only have a few minutes before the rest of the team gets here. You gonna keep staring at me or kiss me?”

    Memories finally started trickling back into awareness when she leaned over and he got a whiff of her strawberry-scented shampoo. _This is Ginny!_ His beautiful, young wife! They finally got together after he retired. He winced when he remembered the backlash Baker had to face when she insisted they go public after a couple years together, when he proposed. He put his large hand on her cheek to stop her descend. She lifted her eyebrows but waited for him to speak. “Rookie… Is it worth it?” he said hesitantly, his voice scratchy and hard to hear.

    “What is?” she inquired. 

    “Being with me. This. Us. Is it worth it for you?”

    Her smile could easily outshine the sun when it broke through. “Yes, Old Man. Besides, it's kinda too late to cut and run,” she murmured. He cocked his head to the side, silently asking her to explain. She leaned into his neck and dragged her nose up his throat. Ginny placed a gentle kiss there and breathed, “I'm pregnant.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The outpour of encouragement on my first fic has brought tears to my eyes, especially at the most inconvenient times (eating breakfast with my family, watching a funny movie with friends, etc). I'm honestly .2 seconds away from printing all the comments and hanging them on my ceiling so they're the first thing I read when I wake up and the last thing I read before I sleep. Thank you all so much!


	3. Comfort.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Series of One-Shots.
> 
> Chapter III: Comfort.

     Alone in the fishbowl Mike called home, Ginny sighed for what seemed like the millionth time, exactly the same amount of times she hit her championship ring against the kitchen counter. If not for the weight that she had yet to get comfortable with, she would have forgotten the thing that now resided on her finger. Had it also not been for the fact that she lost the ring one time in Atlanta (Mike would passionately disagree and add, “ _Three times, Rookie!"_ ) she would have stopped wearing it.

     Truth be told, Mike was more proud of her for getting the ring than she ever was. Don't get her wrong, she's happy to have been part of the players who broke the Padres’ dry spell, but… it wasn't why she was here. Her whole life she had her father behind her, constantly pushing her to be better even long after his death. Baseball didn’t stop after his death and it wouldn’t stop after a championship. Ginny knew there was always room for improvement, room to be _better_. She just had to keep enduring. Getting the ring by no means signified the end of her career as it had (rather joyously) for Mike. She had the rest of her life to achieve more. And no amount of rings would stop her as she continued to challenge herself each step of the way.

     She should have been more comfortable wearing it as it had been 2 months since their championship, approximately the time that she and Mike finally stopped being teammates and started being more.

     Clanking her ring once more against the countertop had Ginny seriously contemplating throwing the thing in the sink garbage disposal and seeing how much the fucking thing would _endure_. Thank God her angry thoughts got interrupted when her phone rang.

     Livan’s name flashed on Ginny's phone screen as it vibrated on the kitchen counter. She set the knife down and swiped to answer with her knuckle and immediately hit speaker.

     “Hello?” Ginny answered then picked the knife back up, continuing her task of slicing up apples.

     “Hey, Mami. Where are you?”

     “At Mike's. What's up?” she asked distractedly as she read the recipe on Mike's iPad again. She didn't put cinnamon, right? She looked around the apples trying to see if the brown powder was cinnamon or brown sugar. She looked at the apple pie recipe again. She swears she didn't put in the cinnamon. Well, it said two tablespoons of cinnamon. She debated with herself and reasoned that if she didn't put any in the first place then one spoon was not going to make a difference but if she did then an additional spoonful would not be too much; it was just gonna give it a nice cinnamony taste.

     “... Sí?” Livan asked.

     “Sorry what? I didn't catch that,” she said, her mind wandering as she put down the knife again and deposited a spoonful of cinnamon in the pie.

     “I am almost at the Omni, I thought we were having a movie night. I brought us Chinese food. You going to be back there in time so we can watch the movie, sí?” Livan explained again.

     Ginny tried her hardest not to smack her hand against her forehead. She tried looking for an excuse but at that moment Mike walked in.

     “Hey, babe,” he said as he set the grocery bags by the mess she was working on. “How's dessert going?” He kissed her cheek as he began to unload the contents into cupboards, drawers and the fridge.

     “You cannot be serious! You're not having sex while I'm on speaker right?!” Livan practically yelled, his voice echoing throughout the house.

     Conscious of the fact that he couldn’t see her, Ginny couldn't help but roll her eyes at his theatrics. “Calm down, Livan, I'm just making an apple pie,” she explained while looking at the empty spoon in the cinnamon bag perplexed and distracted. She still needed to add that one spoon to the mix. She took a healthy amount of cinnamon and dumped it on the brown sugar as she continued, “I'm sorry I forgot our movie night but you can come by here and--”

     “Absolutely not!” Mike objected.

     She glared at him but continued, “we can all watch whatever you want. You can also try my apple pie!” Ginny said enthusiastically. She had never been much of a cook or a baker but she wasn't completely hopeless in the kitchen. She'd show both of her boys that.

     Chatter in the background of the call alerted them that Livan was asking his Uber driver to go to another destination. Mike just growled and sulked. She finished cutting up the apples when Livan replied, “see you in a few minutes.”

     Ginny just smiled and disconnected the call. She was busy putting the finishing touches on her pie when the oven dinged. Ginny inserted the dish in the oven, shut the door but just before she straightened up completely, Mike roped his arms around her. He snuggled her against his chest.

     “Don't you wanna spend a night in just us?” he asked in a husky voice, playing with the hem of her shirt. His whole body pressed up against every part of hers. She threaded her hands with his as they rested on her stomach, ready to stop him. “We can do whatever you want,” he whispered enticingly. Ginny realized she wasn't immune to her boyfriend as her eyelids gradually grew heavier and her breathing slowed. “I can break another record…” he trailed off, pausing to think, moving one large hand under her shirt, noticing the way she tried to swallow the hard lump in her throat. “We haven't revisited the one about how many orgasms I can give you,” he caressed her tight, taut stomach. Ginny tightened her legs together. She couldn't even remember what he was distracting her from. “What was the last record?” Ginny tilted her head back on his shoulder, shuddering a breath. Feeling weightless but simultaneously grounded by Mike's tone. “Four?” His hot breath on her neck, his beard rubbing deliciously against her shoulder. “Five?” He sighed before pressing a lingering kiss there.

     Ginny was sure as fuck about to start the count now, especially when his other hand dipped into her pants, close but not close enough to where she wanted. She pushed his hand even deeper inside when suddenly the doorbell rang. Mike huffed in annoyance.

     That definitely snapped her out of her Mike-induced fog. She pushed his hands away and spun on him. “We can't kick him out, he's grieving and we need to be here for him.” Ginny tried desperately to explain while fixing her clothes in place. She took a couple deep breaths, placed a quick kiss on his lips, dismissing him, then turned to open the door.

     Livan came in and kissed Ginny on each cheek. He took off his shoes at the door, and without acknowledging his teammate and veteran catcher (who's house he was at), he dropped the bag of food on the coffee table then situated himself on the couch. Ginny watched him with a fond and amused expression.

     “So, Duarte,” Mike said with a false warm tone in his voice, “When are you getting the fuck out of my house?”

     “Mike!” Ginny chided.

     “Fuck you,” Livan said without much heat as he scratched the back of his head, words directed at Mike yet his eyes stayed focused on the flat screen TV.

     “Not tonight dear, I have a headache and you're causing it.”

     Ginny didn't know what she expected. She definitely didn't expect both catchers to be best friends. However, she honestly thought they would start warming up to each other by now. They both knew how important the other was to her. Exasperated, she shook her head at the two of them and went to wash her hands.

     “You're on cleanup duty because you're being rude,” Ginny pointed an accusing finger at Mike as she finished drying her hands. Mike just grinned at her and swatted her ass lightly as she passed him to sit with Livan. Mike didn't take it personally. Ginny really hated cleaning up and since she made dessert he was going to offer regardless.

     When she went to the couch, Ginny rested her head on Livan’s thigh. He tossed the remote from one hand to the other so he could play with her curls. Despite him being the one in pain over the messy breakup of his relationship with his girlfriend back home, he was the one making sure she was comfortable. Sure, part of him was soothed by his best friend being near him. But a bigger part of him was wondering how long the suffering would last.

     They sat in comfortable silence as Livan surfed the millions of channels that Mike had, on mute. The only sound in the house was Mike rinsing the equipment that Ginny used before dropping them in the dishwasher.

     By the time Livan settled on a Fast and Furious movie that was still playing in theatres, Ginny was feeling pretty drowsy. Mike finished his task and came to the other end of the couch. He lifted Ginny’s legs, got settled under them and dropped them in his lap. Ginny turned her face up to look at Livan’s profile. “Do you wanna talk about it?” Ginny asked gently. When he shook his head, Ginny asked, “Will you tell me when you're ready?” he nodded once.

     She bit her lip and shot a glance at Mike who shrugged back at her. He rested an arm on her waist and when his hand was within reach, Ginny entwined their fingers together. She was feeling very content between both her catchers when the timer went off for her pie.

     “Shit,” she scrambled out of the couch. “Thanks for setting up the timer, I completely forgot,” Ginny threw over her shoulder as she went to ease the pie out of the oven.

     Ginny set it on the kitchen island to cool down then she made her way back to the living room. Livan apologized (to Ginny) that he didn't know Lawson was joining them and told her she'd have to share with him since he got her more food and he wasn't “getting it on with Lawson.”

     After they finished eating in silence while watching the movie, Mike took all the food cartons and threw them in the trash. He then went to see how Ginny's pie turned out. He had to admit, looking at the perfectly crisped, golden pie, that he was really proud of her. He quickly snapped a picture for instagram with the caption “ _Baker finally living up to her name. #dessert #applepie #pun #imsogoodatpuns_ ” and tagged Ginny and then reluctantly tagged Duarte.

     He took down three plates and scooped a large slice for each of them then balanced all three plates on his hands. Ginny tugged on his beard as he set her plate in front of her and tilted his head down for a brief kiss. Ginny got up and brought three cold beers to the living room.

     She was almost vibrating with excitement as she sat between both men and watched them take their first bite.

     “Jesus,” Mike coughed as Livan said aghast, “Dios mío!” while pretending to dry heave.

     “What?” Ginny yelled alarmed, “What's wrong with it?”

     Mike was too busy wiping his teary eyes when Livan said, “I feel like I just did the stupid cinnamon challenge.”

     “Fuck, Gin, did you dump a whole bag of cinnamon in this?!” Mike said exasperatedly.

     “No,” scoffed Ginny, “I put like…” she began counting, trying to remember how much, “like maybe 3 tablespoons?” she shrugged at the boys.

     “Baby,” Mike said tenderly, “the recipe I sent you said two _teaspoons_.”

     “Oh come on, it's not that bad.” Ginny shoved a spoonful in her mouth and tried not to gag at the amount of cinnamon.

     “Mami, you definitely need stay away from the kitchen.”

     “Fuck you,” Ginny glared at them both.

     Mike chuckled at her attempt to be mad at both of them. He tweaked her nose as he passed her to get to the fridge. “Lucky for us all, I got ice cream.”

     As they settled back on the couch, Ginny lifted her hand, heavy with the ring, and took a bite of her ice cream.

     Maybe it'll take her a long time to get used to the ring but _this._ Right here. Sitting on the couch between her boyfriend and her best friend. Her two catchers...

     Ginny had gotten used to it pretty quickly and had never felt so comfortable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PS. I had this written like two months ago but it just felt incomplete. I added a little more to make it a better. I hope you guys enjoy and I apologize for the length of this. I'm going for approximately 1k one shots here but this turned out to be more.
> 
> PSS. @Dortheyj once wrote on my The Wedding Date AU "You have a knack for ending your chapters at the perfect moment." I never wanna disappoint you so hopefully this lives up to your expectations of my writing. Your comment means a lot to me!


	4. "Did I win?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Series of One-Shots.
> 
> Chapter IV: “Did I win?”

     Determination coursed through Ginny’s veins. By any means necessary, she'd deny him the win.

     If she deliberately sat cross legged on the soft carpet for the tantalizing thong that barely covered her slit to be on display then that was her business. If she oh-so-consciously leaned forward every few minutes for her alluring breasts to stick out then she was giving her matching push up bra a run for it's money. Nonetheless, her distraction tactics seemed to be working as Mike zeroed his attention on her very impressive assets. The remaining cards in his large hands all but forgotten as he audibly swallowed, his throat constricting with the effort.

     Ginny reasoned that she should attempt to ease up as he was lounging in only his blue button up shirt and black boxer briefs. Ginny, on the other hand, had better luck. She sat in her burgundy lingerie, black cap and a lone sock on her right foot. But oh how much she wanted to win. Call it pride or competitiveness or even another bragging rights card, but Ginny really wanted to win this match.

     “How are you doing?”

     They had been going at it for a few hours now. Earlier in the day when Mike noticed how anxious Ginny was to start this week, he became progressively concerned. This wasn't her rookie season. She had been with the Padres for 4 years now, and she had gotten over her nerves long before any other rookie he had ever seen. She was always the exception in a revolving door of rookies. But he digressed. Her nervous habits of toe tapping, knee shaking and various random light scratches on an assortment of any body part she could get her fingernails on seemed to have intensified. When he confronted her, she admitted that she felt weird. Different. When he questioned her what that meant she had no idea how to explain that her body was “suddenly heavier, tighter and more sensitive than before”. Mike immediately and repeatedly insisted she visit a doctor. He would set it up himself if she desired and accompany her every step of the way. Even before her elbow surgery during her rookie year, her fear of hospitals was cemented when her father died. When she realized how anxious Mike was, she promised to drop by her doctor’s office tomorrow. With everything going on, she did not stop to think what might be the problem.

     As a way to prove nothing was amiss or perhaps because she was reminiscing the first time they played strip poker, Ginny insisted they forget about the ordeal.

     And so they played because Mike could never deny Ginny anything. Years spent together has not strengthened his resolve any.

     “I’m okay,” she said, distractedly.

     When he lost this round he debated whether to play as dirty as Ginny was by taking off his boxers before deciding against it. He would much rather tease her. He knew how much him being shirtless turned her on. Slowly, making sure her eyes were firmly on his, he started unbuttoning his button up one button at a time. With every new patch of skin made visible, Ginny was breathing heavier as she lost the fight and her eyes fixed on his chest.

     She was so transfixed that she jumped when he reminded her it was her turn. Ginny cleared her throat.

     “Do you wanna stop the game?” Mike smirked at her.

     Ginny declined. Tucking loose curls behind one ear, she glanced back at her cards and her face transformed from intense concentration to elation as her dimple sunk deep in her high cheeks. She was probably bluffing, but Mike didn't call her on it. Lately, Ginny rarely had moments where she was truly joyful and, by God, he would not be the reason that her infectious delight was dimmed.

     When she triumphantly flashed her cards then waited impatiently to see his losing hand, she sprung up so quickly to celebrate that she got a head rush.

     “Woah,” she whispered, trying to steady her heartbeat. She didn't realize that the hotel room had gotten quite so hot or that it had started spinning impossibly fast.

     That must have been her last thought before she blacked out.

* * *

 

     Mike felt as if he was having an out of body experience. Like an intruder, he watched as the retired coach scrambled quickly and pushed off his feet then caught the most famous ballplayer in the world as she crumbled to the floor before his knees gave out. The process had probably not lasted more than a second but to Mike it felt stretched out and continuous. He suddenly snapped into himself when her heavy weight settled on top of him.

     “Ginny?” he frantically asked while gently shaking her. His hands felt clammy from the light perspiration covering her feverish skin despite her being almost naked. The room temperature did not register as something to be concerned about as he attributed it to the sexual tension between them. Mike could feel himself starting to panic when she didn't so much as twitch when he yelled her name again. The absence of sound in the hotel room felt like an oppressive weight. He reached for his phone and called 911. He grabbed the first few items from his packed bag and was fully dressed and had covered Ginny in one of his shirts and his sweatpants, moments before the ambulance came by.

     The ambulance ride was a blur of voices throwing medical terms and jargon Mike didn't understand as they poked and prodded Ginny. He interrupted them frequently for clarification as Ginny still hadn’t regained consciousness.

     The doctor was alerted on the way and rushed to Ginny’s side as soon as they got to the hospital. When she asked what Mike's relation was to Ginny, he briefly wondered if she had somehow missed the most monumental story of sports history but simply said, “I'm her husband.”

     After doing multiple tests while Ginny was still unconscious, the doctor came back into her room to explain the findings. “Ginny’s blood pressure is a little low and a blood test confirmed she had low hemoglobin count, which might have contributed to her fainting. Her vital signs are all good and so are the embryo's. Mrs. Baker just needs to monitor her iron levels.”

     Mike had been so relieved to discover that Ginny was okay that he almost missed the doctor’s other assessment. “The _what_?”

     “The baby. I apologize, I assumed you knew she was in her first trimester. She's actually 4 weeks along and fortunately both are healthy.” At Mike's still frozen expression, the doctor apologized again and told him she would give him a few minutes to process the information she provided. She advised him to press the button near Ginny’s bed in order to notify the nurses if she woke up or if he needed anything, to which he nodded absentmindedly.

     He and Ginny had been discussing having a baby for about 2 years now. Just last year, she told him she had gotten rid of her birth control pills, but one negative pregnancy after another had deteriorated their hopes of expanding their little family. They had not even had a chance to broach the subject of adoption. But that did not seem to matter. Ginny was pregnant! For a moment, Mike felt his heart squeeze painfully in his chest. _He was gonna be a father!_

     His thoughts were temporarily put on hold as Ginny stirred on the hospital bed.

     “Mike?” she croaked out.

     “Yeah, honey?”

     “Did I win?” she asked in a whisper, her eyes still closed, trusting him to be there invariably by her side.

     Mike rested his head on her pillow, he slid his head to align his forehead against hers. He nodded softly, nudging his nose against hers gently when he replied, “We both did, Rookie.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- Why did I take 84 years to update? My editor hates me and is too busy for me. Not including this fic, I actually have 2-3 chapters ready to be posted for each of my other fics and 2 AU one shot fics that don't belong in this set. I just need someone to edit for me.  
> \- Why don't I reply to comments? Y'all honestly have any idea how much those mean to me. Every time I post a new chapter or fic, I'm worried that I'm posting these without anyone reading them. But I'm so thankful for every kudo and comment on each and every fic/chapter. I owe you all my life. Anyway, I realized that replies count as comments and I didn't want to deceive anyone into thinking I have like 100 comments on a fic/chapter but in reality it's only barely half of that.


	5. "Wanna bet?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Series of One-Shots.
> 
> Chapter V: “Wanna bet?”

     "Wanna bet?"

     Mike scuffed, unbuttoning his cuffs and rolling up each sleeve to his elbows. He looked content; his eyes lighter than she had seen them in far too long, hair fluffed up from his wandering fingers and a soft smile lifting his lips. The beers constantly being replaced at the speed of light by his elbow might have contributed to his serenity. But Ginny was willing to bet it was the company and the atmosphere.

     He seemed to consider her proposition for a nanosecond.“No,” he deadpanned.

     “No?” she was deliberately being obtuse but she couldn't help it. She loved when Mike was just drunk enough to be playful. “Why not?”

     “Rookie,” his voice dropped a few decibels, getting close enough for her to hear but not enough to arouse suspicion. They were just teammates after all. “He would do anything for you, short of committing murder, which, frankly, I'm almost certain was a direct lie.”

     “He would never lie to me,” she said automatically then winced immediately when she realized how incriminating that seemed.

     “See? I rest my case. You guys are too close. I have no doubt you have insider information that you're gonna use against me.” Mike settled back on his chair as he frowned, seeming a little lost in thought. “Wait, should I be worried?”

     “No, old man,” Ginny rolled her eyes at him.

     “Good. I’d hate to see what it would do to the team.”

     Ginny chanced a furtive glance at him from the corner of her eye. She smirked then said, “The team, huh?”

     Mike just shrugged then looked around at the rest of his teammates. His family. He ought to take in the feeling of being surrounded by so many people who cared about him. It was such a dramatic shift from his childhood to adulthood. He understood that in MLB, uncertainty of the future was like a physical entity, constantly hovering over each player. Besides that, Mike knew his days were limited as he got up and got a reminder in the form of creaking that was emitted from his knees. He suppressed a groan as Ginny looked at him in concern but he brushed it off. He’s been sitting long enough for his knees to lock, and rather unexpectedly, Ginny had been by his side most of the night. While he was overjoyed, it was noteworthy as she was usually the first to be up dancing.

     As if their conversation conjured the devil up, Livan materialized by Ginny’s side. “You leaving?” He directed at Lawson.

     “Yeah, calling it a night,” Mike slightly raised his voice to let the others know.

     “Heading out already?” Blip shot Mike a knowing look where he sat on his other side.

     On his way out, he heard Baker asking if Duarte wanted to dance. Mike smiled and shook his head as he walked out.

 

* * *

     Just as he finished drying off from his shower, he heard the door. He made his way over to the foyer while tugging on a worn out blue shirt. It was so faded that it was hard to tell which college logo it housed.

     He made it to the door when it opened, revealing Ginny. Upon seeing him, she smiled softly, almost shyly. “Hey,” she said as she closed the door behind her.

     “Hey,” he croaked. His eyes, so heated, ignited her as he explored every last inch that her off-the-shoulder shirt offered. In the privacy that his fishbowl of a house provided, he was _finally_ able to check her out properly. Mike swallowed as she strolled toward him slowly, his lust filled eyes taking in the tight black pants, stretching to accommodate her impressive, powerful muscles.

     When she got within arms length, he asked what took her so long.

     “Just wanted to see how the bet played out“ she replied.

     “And?” Mike asked, his interest less on their Cuban teammate and more on how quickly he would get to see her naked.

     “You owe me. He said his relationship with Omar is ‘complicated’.”

     “Complicated doesn’t mean they’re together,” he said incredulously.

     She lifted an eyebrow. “Our relationship’s complicated, but we’re together.”

     Reluctantly he sighed, “You’re right. You win.”

     Ginny just smiled cheekily. Her expression turned mischievous when he slid his hands to grope her ass. She was conscious of the fact that he was trying to distract her, but this distraction tactic was her favourite so she let it go.

     She stretched up, efficiently and silently telling him to inched down to kiss her. Against his lips she whispered, “Hey.”

     Ginny groaned when his tongue traced her lower lip then he repeated her greeting.

     When she spread her fingers on his chest and pushed him towards the couch he said, “Woah Baker, I think my girlfriend’s not gonna like this.”

     “Your girlfriend, huh?” She asked, watching him get comfortable. When he stopped squirming, she straddled him, her knees on either side of his hips, digging into the soft couch.

     “Yeah, she’s territorial.” He gasped as she grinded her hips down on his. “She doesn’t like sharing what’s hers.”

     “What’s she like?” Ginny prompted.

     Fully aware she was fishing, he bragged, “She’s beautiful and smart and strong--”

     “Stronger than you?”

     “She’s my favourite pitcher, a great ballplayer--”

     “A gamer?”

     “Will you ever let that analysis go?”

     “The All-Star postgame show on Fox where you told the whole world how much I deserved to be in the majors?” She paused, pretending to contemplate it. “Never.”

     He sighed, feigning defeat. When she smiled gently down at him, Mike suddenly pulled her shirt up, exposing her smooth brown skin and blew raspberries against her hard stomach. Ginny giggled, protesting halfheartedly. With his thighs supporting her back, curls framing her face, eyes bright with delight, dimple sunk deep on display, Mike had never seen her look more beautiful.

     “Hey,” he said seriously.

     Ginny sobered up, her lips stretched into a soft smile.

     “I love you.”


	6. "Don't worry; I got you."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Series of One-Shots.
> 
> Chapter VI: "Don't worry; I got you."

     “Uh,” Ginny grunted breathlessly, every molecule in her body on high alert as adrenaline coursed through her. “You promised we’d go slow,” she panted. She concentrated so hard that a fine sheen of sweat covered her.

     Mike just chuckled in her ear, so close she could smell his fruity gum. Close enough for his breath to caress her cheek. “Don’t worry; I got you.”

     Ginny wasn’t particularly worried at the moment. Despite the empty parking lot, and the privacy of the night shading them like a cloak, his reassurance is what calmed her down. Somewhat. At any rate, she was more stressed than worried. “The parking brake depressed?” At her nod, he continued, "Okay, now put it in first gear, like I showed you. Perfect. Now release the parking brake and rev the engine."

     She obeyed his instructions, heart still hammering in her chest. Her fear of being behind the wheel, in addition to Mike’s intoxicating scent were doing things to her. Hands shaking, her knuckles almost white on the wheel from the death grip which Mike repeatedly told her to surrender, were in her peripheral vision as her eyes never left the target. That was one lesson from Mike that she took to heart.

     “Woah,” she whispered when the car stalled and suddenly lurched to a stop.

     “No, your RPM needs to be higher, Baker," he chastised. “Again.”

     She took a deep breath. She needed to do this. Being a 23 year old woman who has yet to learn how to drive was rather embarrassing. Despite the lack of reason for her to learn, as here in San Diego, there were other modes of transportations that she preferred, however having as much distrust of the public to even set foot in a popular space such as public transportation was terrifying to consider after all the hate mail she receives. Even after Amelia filters every letter. Getting in an uber again was also out of the question as she was on-edge and kept track of every road the drivers took and asked them to drop her off at random locations, away from her hotel. Which defeated the purpose of even taking an uber since she would have to walk a long way anyway. But she digressed.

     Mike leaned back in the passenger seat of his car. His trust in her abilities to learn humbling but Ginny had no patience for that. This was her first lesson! She could very well kill the veteran ballplayer.

     Gritting her teeth, Ginny tried again and this time took in her feet positioning as well as the pressure. It was overwhelming to be able to focus on so many stimuli at once. However, she was a pro at multitasking because of her career. 

     She repeated the exercise from the beginning. When the engine reached a higher RPM (whatever the hell that was, she was more concentrated on the mechanics of this thing than abbreviations and technical crap), she started lifting her left leg slowly to "release the pressure on the clutch" as per Mike's instructions. When the car started moving, Ginny yelled a loud “Woohoo,” proud of her little accomplishment. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mike’s smile stretching across his face.

     “There you go,” he praised. He adjusted his position in the seat in order to face her. “Now try going a little faster than 5 miles per hour.”

     Ginny knew he was teasing her but at this moment she didn’t care. Not only was she able to get behind the wheel, but she was controlling this beast. Ginny accelerated slightly, her shaking hands, causing the the car to fumble timidly right and left as it pleased. It wasn’t a straight line by any means, but when she had a reasonable distance between the car and the edge of the parking lot she panicked and jerked the wheel to the left. Her panic cost her as the car abruptly stopped.

     Mike sighed, faking his disappointment. “Well, you broke the car. Congratulations.” When Ginny smacked his arm with the back of her hand, he relented and said, “You just busted the brake pads. No problem.”

     She rolled her eyes at him. “You own a dealership. Get over it,” Ginny replied, her voice mildly shaking. To steady her nerves, she clutched the gear shift.

     Mike’s chuckle was interrupted as his phone whistled with a text alert. As his phone was resting between them and by the gear shift, Ginny noticed the sender’s name. Rachel.

     Ginny cleared her throat, shifting imperceptibly away from Mike. She hadn’t noticed how close they had drifted towards each other. She pretended to check her mirrors as she noted Mike’s scowl while picking up the phone. He glanced at her once but she avoided eye contact by rubbing her elbow with her hand.

     Suddenly forgotten, his phone was discarded in its place as he looked at her in concern. “Elbow okay?”

     “Actually, I think I need to ice it.” Ginny took the concern as an out as, she reasoned, Mike intended it to be. She didn’t wait for Mike to make an excuse to go see his wife. She released her seatbelt and promptly got out of the car. Mike followed suit from the other side.

     When they met in the middle, in front of the car, Mike asked softly, “Want me to look at it?”

     Ginny bit her lip, not really wanting Mike that close to her now. She was grateful for Rachel’s interruption. At least that’s what she told herself when she shook her head in response to Mike’s question. “‘S okay. I’ll just ice it when I get home.”

     Mike reluctantly nodded then walked to the driver’s side. Mike’s fingers drumming on the wheel, every so often, was the only sound in the car on their way to her hotel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this turned out a little sad and I feel like I betrayed the essence of this fic but I still wanna keep these chapters future-based and not AUs. I've started a bunch of AUs as side projects which I haven't released yet. I wanna make sure they're complete before I post them so people who actually read my fics won't have to wait months for me to update. Which reminds me!! I'm sorry it takes me forever to update! I have a hard time editing and when I feel like a fic is missing something I either completely trash it or forget about it because it makes me uncomfortable that it's a mess. Anyway, thank you all for sticking with this and I am eternally grateful for every kudo and comment. Thank you, thank you, thank you.


	7. I’ll surrender up my heart and swap it for yours.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Series of One-Shots.
> 
> Chapter VII: I’ll surrender up my heart and swap it for yours.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To [@harvestleaves!](http://harvestleaves.tumblr.com) for #pitchsecretadmirers <3

     Ginny’s eyes were all but glazed over as she absentmindedly flipped through the channels on her tv. The lack of plans today should have comforted her enough to relax and destress. However, she had not accounted for how tediously long the day would be. She was about to close her eyes and maybe go back to sleep right there on the couch when her doorbell rang. Groggily, she walked to the door and opened it to reveal her veteran catcher. Hair a mess like he ran his fingers through it multiple times, eyes a little bloodshot and face pale. His disheveled appearance made her pause.

     “You okay?” she asked in concern, completely awake now. Mike rarely dropped by unannounced and he never looked less than perfect. She crossed the threshold and on her tiptoes managed to lay the back of her hand on his forehead. “You’re burning up,” she said as she ushered him urgently inside.

     “I just feel a little lightheaded,” he grimaced as Ginny deposited him on her couch. “Can you make me some tea, please?” he asked when she prompted him to lay down.

     Ginny quickly walked to the kitchen to find tea.

     “I think you’re sick,” she called out from the minuscule kitchen to Mike.

     “It better not be mono or I swear I’ll kill Livan.” The threat would’ve been frightening if Mike had more energy than to mumble it into her decorative pillow.

     She chuckled softly as she waited for it to boil. She then carried the mug to the couch and set it on the table and watched as Mike made a pathetic attempt at getting up. She sighed and with her hands on his upper arm, heaved him up with all her might to get him to sit up. “It’s no one’s fault but your own, old man. You didn’t have to make out with him.”

     “Sonny  _dared_ me!” he croaked. Ginny settled down beside him and handed him the mug. He took a small sip of his tea then muttered, “it was just a peck.”

     “It’s probably just the flu, calm down,” Ginny said but still spread her soft throw on his back when he shuddered.

     “This is good, what kind of tea is it?”

     Ginny looked mildly offended at his surprised tone but replied, “I just boiled Gatorade.”

     With the mug halfway to his lips, Mike froze and stared straight ahead. He looked like he was looking into a camera like in The Office, but Ginny didn’t think it was the appropriate time to mention that. It was a shame too, he was the one who got her watching the show. She snorted which brought his attention back to her.

     “So, what’s up, Lawson?”

     “Actually this,” he gestured to his mug, “is what I’m here to talk to you about.” He set it down on the table then cleared his throat. “The Saunders have unanimously voted for me to deliver the news.” He paused as if he was waiting for her to say something. When she raised her eyebrows in expectation he sighed as if he didn’t want to tell her. “They said you’ve been banned from bringing anything to potluck Tuesday’s.”

     “What are you talking about? Everyone loved my lasagna last week!” She all but yelled at him, clearly offended none of them appreciated the effort put into her culinary masterpieces.

     “Baker, you didn’t even try it,” Mike scoffed then he took a tentative sip from his mug. As if by revealing the contents, the taste changed.

     Almost impassively, Ginny replied back, “Because you dumped a shit ton of cilantro in it.”

     “It was tasteless, Gin! How could you forget to add seasoning?”

     “But you ate most of it!”

     “I would’ve eaten anything after your salty ass meatloaf. I had to pop blood pressure pills after that like candy.”

     Ginny rolled her eyes and unapologetically said, “I’m sorry your old, white ass can’t handle a little salt.”

     “Okay first of all I’m half Asian and second of all I don’t know why you’re shooting the messenger! I basically ate all the lasagna last week!”

     Suspiciously, Ginny asked, “Why _did_ you eat all the lasagna, Mike?”

     Lawson fumbled with his mug then mumbled something inaudible.

     “You were what?”

     “I was high, okay?” he rolled his eyes. That seemed to be the extent of his energy because he leaned back on the couch and closed his eyes. “I had a brownie before going to the Sanders.”

     Ginny took a moment to process what he said then– “You what?!” she yelled. She didn’t even feel a little bad when he flinched. “Are you crazy? What if Al caught you?” Realization washed over her when Mike didn’t say anything, his gaze fixed on the ceiling. Accusingly she said, “He offered you the brownie, didn’t he?”

     “In his defence,” Mike started, voice weak and low, “I told him I’m retiring at the end of this season.”

     Ginny didn’t dare move a muscle at his announcement. He said it with such deliberate casualness that were it not for him opening one eye to peek at her reaction, she would have assumed the statement meant nothing. Her heart squeezed painfully in her chest then seemed to stop altogether. Now it was she who was lightheaded.

     Despite the urge to get up, Ginny tucked her legs beneath her and faced Mike. He did look paler than ever. An exhaustion she didn’t think she had ever felt etched its way in the lines around his eyes and mouth. His hair had more salt than she remembered. She wondered then, as he breathed languidly, his head thrown back on the sofa, how fast time had gone by. Ginny could swear that despite all the constant hard work she put in for the past year, that she had only recently gotten into the majors.

     They sat quietly for a few minutes. Ginny contemplated the past, Mike contemplated the future.

     “Because of Rachel?” Ginny eventually broke the silence, her voice uncertain, eyes never tearing away from the mug.

     In the corner of her eye she saw him shake his head. “Because of my body… among other things.”

     “Among other things?” she echoed.

     “Yeah,” he looked at her meaningfully, “among other things.”

     He coughed, which seemed to snap them both out of the weird tension that had set between them.

     “Did you rush all the way here while you were sick?”

     “I was feeling like shit all day but it was an important matter. I had to see you– because, you know, the Sanders wanted you to know as soon as possible.”

     “Sure,” she teased lightly, giving him a side smile. “We’ll go with that.”

     In response, Mike casually set his hand between them, palm up. Ginny hesitated for a moment but linked their hands together. She didn’t want to consider the consequences. But despite her resolve, the inevitable thoughts plagued her mind so she got up and used their linked hands as leverage to get Mike up. He staggered a little bit and she was worried about his balance, but he remained upright. When he did, Ginny released his hand. She gave Mike a weak, apologetic smile then gestured to where the bedroom was. “Go get some sleep to feel better.”

     Mike lifted his eyes from where their hands were connected to mimic Ginny’s smile then headed towards the bed.

     Ginny let her eyes trail over his retreating back before sighing and settling back to the same position she was in before he showed up. If she felt her hand tingle then she attributed it to the hard grasp of the remote control.

     Two months.

     Ginny glanced at her bedroom door, open but the interior obstructed by the darkness.

     She took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

     Then she turned off the tv.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first published fic. I hope you guys enjoyed it, let me know in the comments or come cry with me on tumblr [@mindykahling!](http://mindykahling.tumblr.com)


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